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Contractor situation - how to resolve??

Posted on 2/1/14 at 11:12 am
Posted by HubbaBubba
F_uck Joe Biden, TX
Member since Oct 2010
45732 posts
Posted on 2/1/14 at 11:12 am
We contracted through My Flooring America, a brick and mortar business, to remove old carpet and tile floors and install new glue down wood floors. About 1700 square feet downstairs and 1250 square feet upstairs. Included foyers, hallways, two living areas, two dining areas, the kitchen and two bedrooms.

Everything was going fine. The floors looked great and we were pleased. The end of the project though is a disaster. They installed 1/2" x 7/8" shoe molding the wrong way. The X/Y axis is wrong. In other words, they installed the 7/8" side down on the floor instead of up on the side of the existing base moldings. I got a knock on my door. They were through and asked me to come out and inspect.

I went a bit ballistic and ask why they installed it that way. The installer said his site inspector had come by and told them to so they could cover the gaps between the wood and the existing moldings.

That tells me they installed the flooring incorrectly and did not cut the boards to fit close enough to the walls and were trying to cover up their mistakes.

Since then, I've discovered the following items:

1. the transitions between the new wood floors are plastic, not wood, and they are cut short and don't fit edge-to-edge in between the door jambs.
2. they did not remove the tile under the dishwasher and it is visible.
3. they did not cope out any corners, using butt ends.
4. I found moldings that were not even nailed in place.
5. they have splices where they tried to piece together moldings in the middle of a run where a single piece would have fit, AND they used butt ends instead of mitered splices.
6. they damaged a piece of home theater electronics and didn't tell me.

At this point in time, we still owe about $5000 and have not paid it. We've paid for everything up to this point. I've personally been in to their office. I have written them a very detailed description of the problems and after ten business days have gone by, they have not responded.

I contacted their HQ in the Houston area yesterday and was told I would be contacted by someone. Of course, nobody has contacted me.

What are my options? The flooring was installed the week before Christmas. They have a 60 day guarantee that if we aren't happy they will take it up and replace it. We like the floor. It looks great, but the molding and other issues just kills the whole installation. I know I can pull in a good flooring and trim carpenter to do this, but I am not willing to touch it until I speak to someone from the company, and so far, nobody has reached out to me.
This post was edited on 2/1/14 at 11:15 am
Posted by guttata
prairieville
Member since Feb 2006
22504 posts
Posted on 2/1/14 at 12:33 pm to
They will probably tell you to just take off a few bucks for your inconvenience.
You could always have them take up the shoe molding that you don't like and to take that off your bill and have someone else come finish it up.
Posted by VABuckeye
Naples, FL
Member since Dec 2007
35523 posts
Posted on 2/1/14 at 12:39 pm to
quote:

I went a bit ballistic


Never a good idea when trying to get something resolved. Not saying you are but no one wants to deal with a hot head.
Posted by kywildcatfanone
Wildcat Country!
Member since Oct 2012
119111 posts
Posted on 2/1/14 at 1:09 pm to
quote:

I went a bit ballistic and ask why they installed it that way.


Not a good first step. If you still owe them the money, you should be able to get some relief from the issue, especially if you talk to the local owner/corporate and discuss these issues rationally.

The agreement might end up not fixing 100% to your satisfaction, but you would keep some money as well, which you could use to hire someone else to fix the issues.
Posted by HubbaBubba
F_uck Joe Biden, TX
Member since Oct 2010
45732 posts
Posted on 2/1/14 at 3:37 pm to
My description of going balistic was over the top. It was more, I was stunned and expressed my disbelief that they had done such a great job on the flooring and then totally ruined it with the finish work.

My concern is, in more of a legal sense, if the contractor company is not being responsive, what can I do? My entire house is waiting on this. I need to have the painters come in and perform the painting, but until this is resolved I can't have them come in. It's been a month and a half and my wife is getting really upset that she can't redecorate or put things back in furniture that has to be moved.

I want to hire another contractor to remove the trim, the thresholds and 'fix' everything, but I believe this puts me in some sort of legal jeopardy if I do this. Is the legal way for me to send them a certified mail, Fed-Ex or UPS letter? Do I need to have a notary certify the demand letter to the contractor, and then if they don't resolve it, do I then have the legal standing to go off and hire someone and withhold what I pay them from what I owe the contractor?
This post was edited on 2/1/14 at 3:39 pm
Posted by eng08
Member since Jan 2013
5997 posts
Posted on 2/1/14 at 8:12 pm to
Send certified letters to the local and national offices so you have a good permanent record that they received them.
Posted by Drop4Loss
Birds Eye Of Deaf Valley
Member since Oct 2007
3860 posts
Posted on 2/2/14 at 2:51 pm to
If your ripping out the shoe......

Paint the shoe it BEFORE ya put it down
Posted by HubbaBubba
F_uck Joe Biden, TX
Member since Oct 2010
45732 posts
Posted on 2/2/14 at 5:02 pm to
Yeah. I know.

Either way, this contractpor or another... its all coming up and being redone. One of the damn cheap arse threshold transitions broke today.

Might be getting somewhere. I found the state's information on thye company through the secretary of state's online website. Looked the guy up on LinkedIn. Sent him a nice invitation and he joined my network. I then sent him a letter throwing everyone in company in my area under the bus. His response:

quote:

I'm not in the office today but I give you my word this will be responded to Monday and we will get a resolution figured out. I am sorry we put you in this position but sincerely appreciate your effort to reach out to me directly. Please enjoy your weekend and rest assured this will be handled in a timely manner now.


We'll see.
Posted by Drop4Loss
Birds Eye Of Deaf Valley
Member since Oct 2007
3860 posts
Posted on 2/2/14 at 6:36 pm to
We did bamboo a few years ago and the transition pieces all match perfectly, same bamboo.

The wood manufacturer, brand, should have the same wood for transition pieces.
Posted by HubbaBubba
F_uck Joe Biden, TX
Member since Oct 2010
45732 posts
Posted on 2/2/14 at 10:24 pm to
They used something really cheap. It's all good. I haven't paid in full. Still owe the last 25% of the contract. Thy don't get a dime until I'm satisfied, or they'll get what's leftover after I hire someone else to fix it correctly.

Your remark, though, is welcome and reaffirms my thoughts.
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